And maybe, just maybe, if we consider ours an enlightened society, that day already has passed.

But the personal story of his family, written with sensitivity, detail and dignity by espn.com's John Buccigross, revealed that the rough, tough, overtly gruff Burke has a gay son.

This isn't my business and this isn't your business, but Brendan Burke apparently needed to tell his story. A story of fear and acceptance that seems more compelling, more human, more difficult and yes, more controversial, because of who his father is, and what his father tends to represent.

"I would prefer Brendan hadn't decided to discuss this issue in this very public manner," Brian Burke told Buccigross. "There will be a great deal of reaction and I fear a large portion will be negative. But this take guts and I admire Brendan greatly and (will) happily march arm in arm with him on this "I had a million good reasons to love and admire Brendan (before). This news didn't alter any of them. I hope the day comes, and soon, when this is not a story."

It took the kind of temerity his father is known for Brendan Burke, at 21, to go public. And Buccigross' piece should be mandatory reading for those who care about family, love and support.

In various forms, I've known Brian Burke for almost 30 years: The longer I've known him, the more depth I've discovered. When you strip away all the noise, the headlines, the made-for-TV bluster, what you're left with is a large man with an even larger heart.

But here is big, loud Burke now, in a remarkable position of sorts: In the historical and sometimes hysterical homophobic hockey world, he can suddenly become the voice of tolerance, the voice of acceptance. He can tell people it's OK to play hockey, be belligerent, and be gay. He can tell people it's all right to coach and manage and scout: Sexual preferences really aren't anybody's business.

There have been no openly gay men in the hockey business -- and Brendan Burke wants to follow in his father's footsteps -- but the world of sports really is no less dimensional than society, only more secretive, more judgemental. There are gays in sport, gays in hockey, gays in society. I know of many who have served in front offices and scouting capacities. They shouldn't have to hide, now or ever. Their sexual preferences should be no more important or no more news than yours or mine. But the sporting world so often is small and small minded.

The more stories told by the Brendan Burkes of the world, the more developed our sporting world will become.

Burke told Buccigross he believes there will be negative reaction to the news that his son is gay. Here, he may be half right. There will be reaction. There will be talk. There will be snickering of sorts. But I'd like to believe the majority won't be negative. By yesterday afternoon, the chat groups had begun their on-line discussions in earnest. In this, the most crass and most unpoliced form of reaction, there was little judgment and mostly understanding and compassion.

Imagine what it must have like to be Brian Burke's son and have to tell your father that you're gay. Imagine that.

If it was someone else's son, some faceless quiet general manager, it might not have ever found its way to print. But the fact that it did will open up closed eyes, because Burke is neither quiet nor faceless. And while some will revel in the irony of the juxtaposition between father and son, there is an openness and importance to what Brendan Burke said.

"Middle school and early high school is the first time I remember thinking that I could be gay, but I definitely tried to ignore it and didn't want to seriously consider it," he told Buccigross. "It's pretty easy to try and convince yourself that it's not true, but it won't work, ever."

Burke told Buccigross: "I wish the burden would fall on someone else's shoulders, not Brendan's. Pioneers are often misunderstood and mistrusted. But since he wishes to blaze this trail, I stand beside him an axe. I simply could not be more proud of Brendan than I am and I love him as much as I admire him."